JP-A-2009-100300 discloses techniques for automatic composition matching and automatic recording of a captured image obtained by the automatic composition matching using an imaging system provided with a digital still camera and a camera platform which electrically changes the panning/tilting directions of the digital still camera.
According to the technique disclosed in JP-A-2009-100300, a person as an object is searched for using a face detecting technique, for example. Specifically, while the camera platform is made to rotate the digital still camera in the panning direction, an object (the face of the person) appearing in an image frame is detected.
Then, when an object is detected in the image frame as a result of the object search, determination is made for an optimal composition for the detection state (the number, the position, the size, and the like of the object, for example) of the object in the image frame at that time (optimal composition determination). That is, an optimal angle is obtained for each of panning, tilting, and zooming.
Moreover, if the optimal angle is obtained for each of panning, tilting, and zooming in the optimal composition determination as described above, adjustment is made to obtain such target angles of the panning, tilting, and zooming (composition matching).
The captured image is automatically recorded after the completion of such composition matching.
According to the automatic imaging operation (captured image automatic recording) by such automatic composition matching, it is possible to automatically record a captured image by optimizing a composition without the necessity for any user operation for imaging.
In addition, JP-A-2009-55410 discloses a technique which is for reducing noise in stationary image data obtained by capturing an image by performing block matching while capturing the image and superimposing plural pieces of captured image data having the same contents.